The mainland city behind the Hotel Zone — where the 800,000-plus residents of Cancun actually live, work, eat, and shop. Most visitors never see it, which is a missed opportunity. The downtown grid centred on Avenida Tulum and Avenida Yaxchilán has a denser cluster of cheap, good restaurants than the Hotel Zone, the markets sell handicrafts at a fraction of mall prices, and the bars around Parque Las Palapas attract a local rather than tourist crowd.
The neighbourhood lacks beaches and resorts but compensates with affordability and a sense of normal Mexican urban life. Stay here for a few nights if you want a more textured experience of the city. The R1 bus shuttles continuously between downtown and the Hotel Zone for 15 pesos.